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Penn State Football: Nittany Lions announce 2014 captains; Hackenberg among group of seven

Penn State football photo day

Penn State quarterback Christian Hackenberg and running back Akeel Lynch pose with the number 1 sign, a signature pose of head coach James Franklin, during photo day held at Beaver Stadium on August 10, 2014.
Joe Hermitt, PennLive

For the first time since 1976, Penn State will have seven captains spread out on offense, defense, and special teams.

The program announced the results of a player and coach vote to determine its leaders Wednesday morning. Senior linebacker Mike Hull and end C.J. Olaniyan were selected co-captains for the defense, while senior guard Miles Dieffenbach and sophomore quarterback Christian Hackenberg will co-captain the offense. Three players, seniors Jesse Della Valle and Ryan Keiser, plus place kicker Sam Ficken, make up the trio of captains for Charles Huff's special teams unit.

"The players and the coaches voted on the team captains and these players have clearly earned the respect of their teammates and coaches," head coach James Franklin said in a release.

"We are trying to promote and develop leadership throughout the entire program and I'm really excited about the role our captains will have throughout the season."

Hackenberg is the first sophomore selected to be a captain in program history, and the 2013 Big Ten Freshman of the Year is only edged out in age by former Lion John Chuckran, who served as team captain in 1944, per the program's release.

The announcement is a change of pace from the last two seasons, when former head coach Bill O'Brien used a rotating senior class as game captains each week before naming a group of captains at the end of the season.

What's not a change of pace is Franklin believing leaders of his team need to fill the role on and off the field. With just over two weeks until the program's season opener, it's a safe bet all seven players fit that bill.

"I think senior leadership is critical and always will be," Franklin said at the team's media day in early August. "But what we are trying to do is develop as much leadership as we possibly can throughout the entire roster."

"It's about getting everybody on the same page and pulling the rope in the same direction. That's the players on the field and the coaches and the fans and the community and that's all of us. That's what we have been working so hard to do for the last seven months is bring the family back together and make it stronger than it's ever been."